Veteran escorted out from town hall speaks on frustrations with Congressman Edwards

ASHEVILLE, NC. (WLOS) — The man who made national headlines after being escorted out of Congressman Chuck Edwards' Town Hall sat down with News13 on Friday to share his story.

Jay Carey, a 54-year-old retired disabled veteran was escorted out of the Ferguson Auditorium on Thursday but said he has no regrets.

"I was seeing red," said Carey. "I was angry, and I wasn't going to be silenced."

During the town hall, Congressman Edwards faced angry constituents like Carey who expressed their frustration over Edwards' support of President Trump's stance on certain issues including Medicare, federal cuts and social security.

Carey said he believed Edwards had not done anything for veterans.

"I told him to do his job, 'You're not doing your job,"' he said.

The Department of Veterans Affairs is undergoing a reorganization that includes cutting as many as 80,000 employees from the agency, according to an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press earlier this month.

"I spent over 20 years fighting for this country," Carey said. "I earned those benefits as well as my fellow veterans —I watched my friends die in war, I bled for my country."

Congressman Chuck Edwards' town hall at AB Tech escalated into a shouting match by constituents. (Photo: WLOS Staff)

Carey explained how he lost all of his belongings to Hurricane Helene, and that he doesn't believe he is getting the support he deserves.

Veterans Affairs is launching an effort to cut its workforce by 15% to reach pre-pandemic employment levels, Secretary Doug Collins announced Wednesday.

Carey also mentioned how he is concerned about potential cuts to Medicare and Social Security.

"Social security is the lifeblood of this country; veterans are the lifeblood of this country," he said.

Carey said that there isn’t enough transparency from Congressman Edwards.

"He's just a puppet — he's not thinking for himself," he said. "He is doing exactly what Trump says; he's not making any decisions. He can't make any decisions; he's afraid too — he's a Coward."

The U.S. VA Press Secretary Pete Kasperowicz reached out to News 13 after seeing the interview with Carey and gave the following statement:

"The Biden Administration astronomically grew the department’s budget and number of employees, and VA wait times and backlogs increased. We are doing things differently. But the legacy media, government union bosses, and some in Congress are working together to use rumor, innuendo and disinformation to spread fear in the hopes that the department will just keep in place the status quo.

Here are the facts: VA health care has been on the Government Accountability Office’s high-risk list since 2015. It is still on the list to this day. In other words, VA has had serious problems for at least 10 years running. That’s why our efforts to reform the department are so important.